A 38 year old single heterosexual female, sans husband, sets off on an adoption journey, hoping to become mother to an Ethiopian infant. All relevant topics may be discussed, such as international adoption, attachment parenting, transracial adoption, etc.

Friday, May 29, 2009

Slow News Day?

It may not be immediately obvious to everyone, but one family are convinced they can see the face of Jesus on the lid of a jar of Marmite.Claire Allen, 36, said she was the first to notice the image on the underside of the lid as she was putting the yeast spread on her son's toast.Her husband Gareth, 37, said he could not believe his eyes when he saw it.Mr Allen, of Ystrad, Rhondda, said: "The kids are still eating it, but we kept the lid."He explained: "Claire saw it first and called her dad to come and take a photo of it."When I first looked at it I wasn't sure, but when I moved it away from me it started coming out. I thought yeah, she's right - that's the image of Jesus.People might think I'm nuts, but I like to think it's Jesus looking out for usClaire AllenMrs Allen said her 14-year-old son Jamie had also remarked on the likeness.She told the South Wales Echo: "Straight away Jamie said 'that looks like God', and my other boys (Robbie, four, and Tomas, 11) even said they could see a face."People might think I'm nuts, but I like to think it's Jesus looking out for us."We've had a tough couple of months; my mum's been really ill and it's comforting to think that if he is there, he's watching over us."

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Facts from Ethiopia

CHILDREN'S STATUSNewborns dying before age 1 - 1 in 10Children dying before age 5, often from preventable diseases -1 in 6Main causes of early childhood deaths -Diarrhea and pneumoniaOrphans, 2003 estimate -4 millionChildren under age 5 stunted from lack of nutrition - Over 50%High school attendance, females - 8.5%Population with use of adequate sanitation facilities - 15% Rural population with use of adequate sanitation facilities - 4% Population with use of improved drinking water sources - 24% Population with access to public health facilities - 61.3% Population more than 10 km (6 miles) from nearest health facility - Over 50%Physicians per 100,000 people - 3Population moderately to severely underweight - 38% Population stunted due to lack of nutrition - 47%

HIV/AIDSAdults infected weekly - 5,000Age group with highest rate of infection 15-24 years; female prevalence 3 times greater than among malesWomen living with HIV, 15-49 -770,000Mother-to-child HIV transmission - 2nd highest number of new infections per yearChildren dying from AIDS - 1 in 16Children orphaned by AIDS from 2003 to 2007 - 720,000